Atlanta Hawks reach Eastern Conference finals for first time

The Atlanta Hawks have secured a spot in the Eastern Conference finals for the first time after beating the Washington Wizards 94-91 in game six of their playoff series.

After a closely-fought first quarter, Atlanta started to pull ahead before half time, with Paul Millsap and DeMarre Carroll leading the team to a six-point advantage at the break.

The conference's top seed extended the gap to 14 points early in the third, but Drew Gooden and John Wall led a Wizards rally to keep the home side in contention heading into the final 12 minutes.

Bradley Beal kept the points coming for Washington, edging them in front for the first time since the opening quarter with less than four minutes to play.

Millsap and Carroll quickly put Atlanta back in front though, leaving Paul Pierce needing to add a three-pointer at the buzzer in a bid to force overtime, but a review of the shot confirmed that he made the play after time had expired, handing the Hawks the win.

Atlanta will face the Cleveland Cavaliers in the conference finals for a place in the NBA Finals.